individuals in front of the restaurant appears calm. he walks away, it says, without his backpack. ten seconds later the second bomb goes off in the spot where he left the backpack. the fbi says both the marathon bombs were made with pressure cookers and contained metal bbs to act as shrapnel that were coated with adhesive. they contained hobby fuse similar to this. at the scene of thursday night's shootout with the bomb suspects in watertown, investigators say they found another bomb made with the same brand of pressure cooker and also hobby fuse and bbs. the fbi says agents searched dzhokhar tsarnaev's college dorm room and found bbs and what they call a large pyrotechnic. they also say they found a white hat and black jacket resembling what was worn by the man in the bombing suspect photos released by the fbi. a former federal prosecutor said it is a surprisingly solid start.

>> they took a great unknown which was last monday and made it virtually a known just a week later. the entirety of the law enforcement that worked this case should be commended for their efforts. >> reporter: court documents contain new details about thursday night's car jacking. the fbi says surveillance pictures show dzhokhar and tamerlan tsarnaev at a gas station in cambridge where they drove with the owner of the suv they carjacked. one of them, investigators say, began the carjacking by pointing a gun at the driver and saying, "did you hear about the boston explosion? i did that." the carjacker showed the driver he had bullets in the gun and said, i'm serious. at the scene of the shootout in watertown where tamerlan tsarnaev was killed other explosives were also found. in an interview for "dateline nbc," the boston police commissioner said that's one reason he thinks the brothers planned other attacks. >> we had to step over unexploded devices they threw at the officers. i can only understand from that that they had other targets.

they were going other places. >> reporter: both charges today carry the death penalty as a maximum sentence. it is a long way before the justice department decides to seek it. if it did, he would be, by far, the youngest defendant in a federal death penalty case in modern times. brian? >> pete williams starting us off in our washington newsroom. thanks, as always. in the city of boston today getting back to something approaching normal seemed to be job one, starting with what will forever be the crime scene, boylston street, the finish line at the marathon where the bombs went off. katy tur is there for us this evening. katy, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. at 5:00 the fbi handed over boylston street and the crime scene to the city of boston, officially clearing the way for its re-opening. this seven days after those explosions that rocked this city.

2:50 monday afternoon, at exactly the moment a week ago that terror struck boston, the city came to a standstill. a moment of silence to reflect and remember all they have been through and all they have lost. [ bell ringing ] >> reporter: in medford, the bells tolled as the first funeral was held. hundreds of family and friends, including local police and fire officials came to remember 29-year-old krystle campbell. >> the fact that someone from my community was touched by this event, it's touched everybody. there is nobody around here that it hasn't touched. >> reporter: on boylston street the spontaneous memorial, still growing, was moved as volunteers arranged flowers and signs in anticipation of the street's re-opening. when the fbi turned what had been the crime scene back to the city of boston. >> we want to try to carry on. we are a very strong city. we push forward. >> reporter: the city got back to work monday as well. public transit was fully up and running after friday's shelter in place order and thousands poured in as on any other weekday. >> people are a little quite, still a little melancholy, but people are getting back to their

routines. >> reporter: over the weekend the boston bruins gave the jerseys off their backs to honor first responders. and at fenway park -- >> what an honor it is for me to be here today. >> reporter: neil diamond made a special appearance to lead the crowd in "sweet caroline." ♪ sweet caroline >> reporter: at hospitals, dozens are still recovering and better news comes each day. >> we are happy to report the amputation patients are nearly completed, and these patients are starting the process of both physical and mental reb habitation which is really going to be the next step in their care. >> reporter: as of tonight 48 remain hospitalized, two in critical condition. not far from here the students of boston university are preparing for a memorial service for grad student lu lingzu who was killed during last week's attacks. brian? >> what a terrible week in boston. katy tur there tonight. thanks. much of the focus of the investigation now concerns the

region of the world where these accused brothers once lived. specifically what the older brother did there when he went home for a six-month period. nbc news london-based correspondent adrian mong went to the russian republic of dagestan and spoke with the suspect's father. >> reporter: half a world away from boston, anzar tsarnaev struggles to understand. he cannot believe his boys were behind the carnage in boston. the last time he spoke to them was thursday night, three days after the bombings. i asked, how are things, he said. like it was any other normal conversation. anzar calls dzhokhar an innocent child and described tamerlan as a gifted boxer but gentle and homesick. he said during tamerlan's visit last year he talked about moving back. but if tamerlan had become alienated in america, angry or radicalized his father said he didn't see it.

and tamerlan was already religious here, visiting a mosque every day, one many say has ties to radical islam. >> they have arrested people from this mosque, said this man, a government security adviser. anzar would not discuss tamerlan's religious beliefs. his mother was too upset to appear on camera. they insist their sons are innocent. i need facts, proof, the father cries. they have destroyed the reputation of all of us. anzar had been planning to fly to the u.s. tomorrow. now he's staying to meet russian authorities. like everyone, they have questions. adrian mong, nbc news, dagestan. in the midst of the boston story came another one this afternoon. another terrorist plot, unrelated, troubling nonetheless. this one was thwarted. it targeted passenger trains, routes from the u.s. to canada

among the potential targets. nbc's stephanie gosk has been working the story all day. stephanie, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. well, the two suspects are not canadian citizens but have been living in the country. they are accused of planning to derail a passenger train with direction from al qaeda elements in iran. nbc news learned trains originating in the u.s. were scouted as possible targets. the investigation called operation smooth has been ongoing for a year with help from the fbi and the u.s. department for homeland security. canadian authorities emphasized today that the plot was still in its planning stages and the public was never in any imminent danger, but these two suspects had both the capacity and the intent to follow through.

officials say there is no connection to these suspects and the boston marathon bombing. brian? >> stephanie gosk here in our new york studios tonight. stephanie, thanks. now to the impact of washington all across this country. we have heard a lot about the so-called sequester budget cut cancelled white house tours and cancelled air shows this summer. but now the american people as a whole just might take further notice because now the sequester is responsible for delaying airline flights across this country. rehema ellis is at laguardia airport in new york with the story. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. passengers here at laguardia and elsewhere are experiencing delays coming and going. one example today, the 8:00 a.m. washington to new york shuttle was delayed on the runway in washington and didn't take off until close to 10:00 in the morning. airline officials say as many of the widespread delays today are likely the result of the federal budget cuts known as the sequester. and why? well, one way that the f.a.a. is dealing with its share of cutbacks is by furloughing air traffic controllers saying on any given day 10% of the 15,000 controllers could be on furlough.

with fewer controllers but the same number of flights the f.a.a. and the airlines have been warning travellers about the possibility of delays. up to three and a half hours in atlanta. more than two hours in chicago. an hour and 20 minutes at laguardia. the f.a.a. says as long as the sequester is in effect, the delays could last through the summer, which is the busy travel season. brian? >> rehema ellis at laguardia for us tonight. thanks. still ahead on our broadcast, a series of extraordinary events. a town blown apart, a poison letter sent to the president, a bride on television in the middle of an earthquake. that's just the start of what happened while the nation's attention was elsewhere last week. later the sad word tonight of the loss of a music legend. ♪

we're back. we are all just back from a weekend that gave this country a chance to breathe. we were all watching boston last week which meant there was a lot going on in the world that would have deserved our attention during any other time, starting right there at the finish line. because of all that was lost on that beautiful day in boston, we also lost track of who won. the winners of the marathon were virtually ignored. for the men, it was lelisa desisa, running only his second marathon. for the women, rita jeptoo from kenya. she won in 2006 and took a

hiatus to have a child. the town of west, texas, remains torn apart. satellite imagery shows the earth transformed after the colossal blast that measured the equivalent of a 2.1 earthquake on the richter scale. 14 dead including ten first responders who went into the fire and were killed by the explosion. 200 people were injured. among the events that broke through last week but otherwise would have dominated our coverage, what the president called a shameful day for washington. the failure to pass expanded background checks for gun purchases. upwards of 90% of the american people support it, but not enough members of the u.s. senate. vice president biden wore his reaction on his face. the president showed a rare flash of anger. the newtown families went home still grieving. remember the north korean missile launch? just the threat of it made it our lead story for 12 of the preceding 17 nights. most analysts said they were just looking for attention and they've got it.

the missiles are still there and they are still making threats. this past weekend an earthquake in china measuring 6.6 killed an estimated 200 people and injured thousands. one local journalist left her own wedding to go on television and join in the reporting on the disaster. while boston was our awful national tragedy it would make for a mild day in other countries. that same day in iraq, 37 people were killed in one bombing. this weekend there were dozens of explosions as iraqi elections approach. remember those ricin letters sent to the president and the u.s. senator from mississippi? they arrested a former elvis impersonator who once performed at an event for the senator. last week we learned 787s will be cleared for takeoff again. the faa approved boeing's plan to fix the battery problem that created a fire risk. we learned last week superstorm sandy actually moved

the earth along the east coast. sensors designed to measure such things say the storm's wave action shook the earth's crust as it rearranged the contours of the coastline. we lost major figures last week. pat summerall, among the very best sports casters of all time, also a top flight player in the nfl in his day. and al neuharth died. he created usa today. we had never seen a national newspaper before. we had certainly never seen it in all color. it was instantly branded mcpaper for its simplicity, but it has remained and it survives its creator. al neuharth, dead at 89. meantime, back in boston, it was a great weekend. the city was open again. and in boston that means the sox and the swan boats and little kids visiting the ducklings

until it's time to go home. >> bye-bye! >> reporter: after what we have been through, who can blame any of us for wanting our very own comfort dog every day for the rest of our days? thank goodness they made their way to boston. we'll take a break. we are back in a moment with the special delivery today that reduced a lot of folks to tears.

♪ freedom ♪ freedom ♪ freedom the great richie havens has died. he'll be forever known as the opening act at woodstock. it wasn't planned that way. some of the other artists were stuck in traffic and half a million people were growing impatient. but after that, we appreciated him for his raw and beautiful musical talent. the oldest of nine kids he grew up singing doo-wop in brooklyn. he leaves us with classics including ad campaigns for cotton and amtrak, among others.

he was an actor and an activist and a painter and a guitar playing singer with an iconic voice. the elegant richie havens was 72 years old. in the midwest it's been another day of battling flood waters. swollen rivers including the illinois river in peoria causing a whole lot of damage. the worst may be yet to come sadly. more rain in the forecast for tonight which had some along the mississippi trying to get out ahead of it to reinforce dams. in fargo they have gone as far as tearing down houses to make way for a levee. they are expecting record flooding when the snow melt comes. people around this country and the world have been looking for ways to reach out to the folks in boston. while the staff at the chicago tribune decided to say it with pizza. they filled the newsroom at the boston globe with pizzas, attached a note thanking their

counterparts for their hard work. it read in part we can't buy you lost sleep. at least let us pick up lunch. a lot of hospitals and police departments around the country have done the same for their colleagues in boston as well. up next here tonight, one of the most incredible acts of heroism in boston. the guy who gave a stranger the shirt off his back and saved his life in the process.

we leave you tonight with a story from that awful moment a week ago today in boston. how the lives of two men specifically, a father from new hampshire, a student at a massachusetts college, intersected in a way neither man will ever forget. our anne thompson has the story tonight from boston. >> reporter: ron brassard and rob wheeler were strangers a week ago. >> look, he's trying to outfunny me. >> reporter: terror made them fast friends. do you believe in fate? >> i do now. i do today. you know, how can you not? >> if you asked me monday morning i don't think i would have said yes, but absolutely. >> reporter: it was 23-year-old rob wheeler who took the shirt off his back and wrapped it around 51-year-old ron brassard's severely injured leg. >> when i looked down and saw what was happening there, at that moment i absolutely needed someone to help me. that someone was rob.

>> reporter: brassard stood near the finish line with his wife and daughter to cheer a friend. wheeler wasn't even supposed to run the race. a friend who couldn't make it gave the college senior his spot. >> i hope i don't get banned from the boston marathon for this one. >> reporter: fate slowed wheeler down. his knee locked up here along mile 16. he helped a woman who fell at mile 25, and he crossed the finish line just two minutes before the first bomb went off. >> i didn't have a scratch on me. you don't think, can i help someone or shouldn't i? you're there, you do that. >> reporter: his wife karen and daughter suffered shrapnel injuries. ron will keep his leg, but now the man who's always been the caretaker, needs care. >> logically, i know there is too much pride. but it's been a difficult week for me. it's been a difficult week. >> reporter: a radio station gave ron and his family red sox tickets for sunday's game. rob went in his place.

>> we are going to be on may 19 attending rob's graduation. we are part of each other's life now. >> reporter: an unshakable bond forged by an act that shook the world. anne thompson, nbc news, boston. >> nice story to end on as we start a new week on this monday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. of course we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com now. >> i'm raj mathai. >> and i'm jessica aguirre. more eyes in the sky. security cameras led law enforcement to the bombers in boston and now some bay area leaders want more cameras on our city streets, too.

while the extra blanket of security may comfort some others see it as an overreach. the police chief is making the case for more cameras on market. >> reporter: he did make his case for more cameras along busy market street but not everyone agrees with that. meanwhile, at the same time people are gathering to support boston. these runners you see here will take off soon to remember boston one week later while chief greg suhr is calling for more surveillance cameras. >> i'm not talking about monitoring them full time, during these major events when we have thousands and thousands of people. >> reporter: san francisco police chief greg suhr is making a major push for more surveillance cameras along market street. >> i don't think there is a person in this country that didn't watch the events of last week unfold and watched on video. so it would be nice to have that advantage here in san francisco.

>> reporter: chief suhr says he is thinking a lot more about security because of a couple of upcoming events. the run is next month and the starting point is market street. >> i think the best way to go is to find out what we already have and to fill in the blanks. and i don't think we need to reinvent the wheel. i think there is already a lot of cameras on market street. >> reporter: we captured a lot of them with our camera, business owners we talked to are in favor of the chief's idea and so is one person from the running community. >> our biggest concern is for the safety of our friends and family. obviously we're concerned for them. but at the same time i think each runner will handle it differently. >> reporter: aclu spokesperson says there has to be another way to make the community safe. she says cameras don't prevent terrorism. >> we know that video cameras don't prevent or reduce terrorism.

we do know that video cameras are expensive and invasive and ripe for abuse. we have a lot of questions and the community should have a lot of questions. >> reporter: the aclu says it wants more conversations about more cameras on market street. meanwhile, supervisor muir is planning a vote on this. i'm cheryl hurd. nbc bay area news. >> the bay area continues to play a part in the story. two players from the oakland as paid a visit to children's hospital. they visited 11-year-old aaron hern and his family. the photo is making rounds on social media. the martin ezboy was one of dozens injured when the twin bombs went off. he has had several surgerie